The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has warned candidates currently enrolled in tertiary institutions to declare their studentship while registering for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination and Direct Entry, or risk losing their admissions.
The Board said it is not an offence for undergraduates or other matriculated candidates to apply for the 2026 UTME or Direct Entry. However, failure to disclose an existing admission amounts to a violation of its regulations and could lead to the forfeiture of both the old and new admissions.
This clarification was contained in a statement issued on Wednesday by JAMB’s Public Communication Adviser, Dr Fabian Benjamin, following what the Board described as widespread misrepresentation of its guidelines by some education commentators.
“The attention of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has been drawn to a misleading and unfortunate distortion of a portion of the Board’s clear directives to candidates registering for the 2026 UTME and Direct Entry,” Benjamin said. “This deliberate misrepresentation is being propagated by some unscrupulous self-styled education advocates for parochial interests.”
He explained that such misinformation often surfaces at the beginning of every registration cycle, adding that many of those spreading false narratives do not take time to study official guidelines before addressing the public.
Benjamin stressed that disclosure of studentship status is mandatory and central to the Board’s statutory responsibility of preventing multiple matriculations.
“For the avoidance of doubt, and in line with its mandate, all candidates registering for the 2026 UTME or Direct Entry must disclose their matriculation status where applicable,” he said.
According to him, disclosure simply means that once a candidate secures a new admission through the current registration, the previous admission automatically ceases to exist.
“The law is explicit that no candidate is permitted to hold two admissions concurrently,” he added.
The Board also raised concerns over findings that some matriculated students have been involved in examination malpractice by acting as professional examination takers.
“Mandatory disclosure expedites appropriate action whenever such candidates are apprehended,” Benjamin stated.
He noted that although JAMB’s system has the capacity to detect prior matriculation, candidates who fail to make voluntary disclosure still stand the risk of losing both admission opportunities.
The Board urged parents and candidates to rely solely on official information and guidelines, warning against misinformation circulated for personal gain.
Registration for the 2026 UTME officially commenced on January 26. As part of measures to strengthen examination integrity, JAMB also announced that only Computer Based Test centres with remote monitoring capability would be allowed to participate in the registration exercise.
The policy, tagged “No Vision, No Registration, No UTME,” is aimed at curbing registration infractions and restoring confidence in the examination process.
